(ThySistas.com) Many people across age, race, and gender barriers are hurt behind the sudden news of the passing of Kobe Bryant. In a single moment January felt like it went to trash for many, and the emotion was simply uncontrollable. We witnessed the breaking down of the stronghold of emotion kept by many black men. When it came to light that his daughter was also killed in the crash with him…that there were seven other people and in those seven there was children we were brought to our knees with grief. There were no words, and a numbing denial of reality. Many people spoke of not wanting to acknowledge what had happened in the hope that it would be reported that the plane crash was fake news. We needed Kobe Bryant to be alive…and he isn’t. our hearts, collectively, go out to the families of all those lost in that devastating plane crash. Every life on that plane was important and deserves our prayers.
When we talk about why the death of Kobe Bryant is so painful we have to come to think about conditions we see everyday because it echoes why we mourn. A generation saw their Michael Jordan, their GOAT, go down. They grew up with Kobe Bryant. They watched the boy become the man. They watched him as a bright rising star, only to be brought low in the court of law. We all watched the shame of Kobe Bryant and many just knew that would be the end of what could have been a great player and legacy. Instead Mamba mentality surfaced, and we witnessed Bryant rise from the ashes, and he got up a more aware person.
We watched him define what it meant to pursue his craft relentlessly caring not about the words of the naysayers that would deem him as a jerk to put it nicely. He was fearless on the court and struck at his opponents without provocation…there was no hesitation. Many of us watched him succumb to an achilles heel injury that we knew would be career ending. However, it just became ammunition to make the Mamba work harder. He once again defied the naysayers and walked back onto the court to let the world know that his career would be governed on his terms. Even if you were never a fan…you have to respect the talent, and work ethic of Kobe Bryant.
The loss of a legend in the game of basketball hurt as Kobe Bryant is an icon in his profession. However, we mourn the loss of the man. We cry for the husband, father, son, and brother that is Kobe Bryant. He gave us a view into how much he loved his family. He supported the dreams of his daughters, and it didn’t bother him at all that he had no sons. He valued and nurtured the gifts God gave him in his children.
We mourn because we didn’t get to see this man evolve into the next stage of greatness he was set to purse. When we look at him we can think of all the people, and children, we loss too soon. What they would have become is now a part of our imagination, and it hurts. Kobe Bryant is greatness personified…but he was far from finished, and his loss will be felt for a long time.
Staff Writer; Christian Starr
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